Mar 22, 2010 |
Photo by rockcreek
I don’t own a television set, and while I do watch the odd show, it’s usually at a rate of about one or two programmes per week, give or take – and never on any particular schedule.*
If I have a bit of downtime, and my brain isn’t up to much, I’ll head to iPlayer for a panel show comedy of some kind, or a light and fluffy documentary programme like that Wonders of the Solar System thing I enjoyed half an hour of over the weekend.
But I love great television. Especially well-written television. I’m a huge Joss Whedon fan, I’m blown away by pretty much anything that Jane Espenson turns her hand to (with the possible exception of Andy Barker, PI) and I think Aaron Sorkin‘s a bit of a genius. I think the medium is capable of some fantastic long-arc storytelling, and some of it is easily the equal of some of the best cinema out there. Often it’s even better.
My problem is one of time. But I have an idea that provides me with a very simple solution to that…
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Feb 15, 2010 |
Our glamorous campus. Photo courtesy Birmingham City University
Birmingham Centre for Media & Cultural Research
Research Studentship worth £16,680
Popular music and radio in the digital age
The Birmingham Centre for Media & Cultural Research is a rapidly developing centre of research excellence based at Birmingham City University with a community of over thirty academics and research degree students. Centre staff conduct research into all aspects of the media and popular culture, but have a particularly strong reputation in work about the changing form of popular music and radio media.
The research would form part of the work of the Interactive Cultures group, and you would be supervised by Prof Tim Wall, Dr Paul Long, and Andrew Dubber. Their work in popular music, radio and cultural politics is internationally recognised with both academic and media communities, and you would have the opportunity to be involved in a number of major research and knowledge transfer initiatives including the Music and Radio Innovation and the Music Consumption in the Digital Age projects.
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Oct 30, 2009 |
For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been working on a Music As Culture project with the band UB40.
They’re going to be playing a gig at the Rainbow pub in Digbeth on Tuesday to raise money to help the venue pay for a new soundproof roof over the courtyard, so that they don’t get shut down due to the noise complaints.
They’re in Switzerland at the moment, performing their last festival gig of the season, but they’re back in Birmingham tomorrow. Meanwhile, they’ve been taking short videos of the band rehearsing, soundchecking, performing and hanging out, and I’ve been uploading that to the site.
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Mar 25, 2008 |
John Kieffer coping with the bitter cold outside Euston station
I met with John Kieffer today. As of today, he’s my mentor.
John’s a well-respected figure in the creative sector. He used to be the Director of Performing Arts for the British Council, and has an astonishing CV of accomplishments.
I particularly like the fact that he lists (in this order) his influences as: Professor Stuart Hall, Miles Davis, Mark Rothko and Joni Mitchell. They’re all on my various lists of “Greatest Ever…”
I have to say, the mentoring thing felt weird to set up. I’ve always encouraged my students to find a mentor – and I’ve long believed that you should always have at least one. Someone you trust to bounce ideas off, seek suggestions, introductions and advice from and generally just act as a guiding force.
I’ve had mentors throughout my career – whether they were aware of that role in any ‘official’ capacity or not. But John Kieffer was the first person I’ve ever actually approached and asked ‘would you please be my mentor?’. And that was a kind of a leap of faith (what if he said no?!).
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Mar 21, 2008 |
I’ve spent the past couple of days showing Saskia and Piet from Veronica Holdings around Birmingham, and introducing them to some of the more interesting music industry people around town.
We’re going to be doing a project together, which involves music, students, mixing, DJs, gadgets and a trans-European party. My job, while they were here, was to make sure they saw some of the nicer bits of Birmingham, make sure we got all of the work done that we needed to do, and try and make them feel as welcome as we do when we come to Amsterdam.
Some of my friends were skeptical: “Once you’ve shown them everything that’s great about Birmingham, what are you going to do in the afternoon?” – but actually – we did okay.
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